Chapter 179 Renault Tank
"My name is Estiny, sir, nice to meet you!" Colonel Estiny introduced himself to Matthew.
"Matthew, from the Mechanical Department!" Matthew responded with a smile: "We have met many times!"
"Yes, of course!" Colonel Estiny looked a little embarrassed.
He had always thought that Matthew was just an ordinary worker, and a disabled worker at that... In this era, disability also meant being eliminated and having to rely on others to live.
Therefore, Colonel Estiny had not had much contact with Matthew until today when he suddenly discovered that Matthew actually had such talent.
In Matthew's eyes, he previously thought that Colonel Estiny was just an ordinary commander, but he did not expect that he seemed to have in-depth research on tanks.
Charles ignored the two of them. He took a pencil and drew quickly on the manuscript paper. His drawing skills were not good and the lines were crooked, but that didn't matter.
It didn't take long for the drawing to be finished. He handed the sketch to Matthew: "Look at this, Matthew! Maybe we can design the road wheels like this, divided into several groups, with four road wheels in each group!"
Joseph came up to take a look out of curiosity. He didn't quite understand the design: "What's the meaning of this... Master Charles?"
But Matthew and Estinis only took a glance at the sketch and looked incredulous.
"No, no, this makes sense!" Colonel Estiny pointed at the triangular structure and looked at Charles with uncertainty in his eyes. "It's dynamic, right? I mean, they are active, right, Lieutenant?"
"Yes!" Charles replied in the affirmative. "The triangles can be connected with hydraulic shock absorbers, so of course they are dynamic."
"This will obviously achieve a better shock absorption effect!" Matthew's eyes remained on the sketch, as if he was looking at a treasure map. "It's not even just shock absorption. This is determined by its special structure. Once stressed, these wheels will open horizontally and the track will sink in this part... God, this can achieve different tensions for each set of road wheels, and the track will be as soft as a dough soaked in water!"
"This can achieve a certain balance for the vehicle body!" Colonel Estiny thought immediately: "Because the track is as soft as dough, the vehicle body will maintain a certain degree of levelness, which will not only increase the comfort of the crew, but also make it easier for the machine gunner to aim at the target! God, what a genius design!"
"How...how did you come up with this idea, Charles?" Matthew felt a little ashamed. He looked back at his model and said, "Compared to your idea, mine is just a child's toy!"
"You have done very well, Matthew!" replied Charles.
Charles was telling the truth.
Matthew's progress was normal. He started with springs, then hydraulics, and then slowly improved through constant attempts until a triangular suspension appeared... It took Renault a total of one year and three months from the time it received the R&D project to the production of the prototype.
All Charles did was ignore the process and directly draw the result.
The hanging was over, and Charles turned his gaze to Colonel Estiny and asked, "What's your question, Colonel?"
"Well, it's like this." Colonel Estiny replied, "I have actually partially figured out my idea. During this period, I was thinking that since the main function of a tank is to provide cover for the infantry and help the infantry break through the defense line, can the tank be made lighter to increase its speed and range?"
Colonel Estiny glanced at Matthew and Charles and said, "Your method of increasing the hydraulic shock absorber can already increase the speed of the tank, but I think... maybe we can improve the overall performance of the tank, so that we won't have the same regret as last time in La Fox!"
La Fox was undoubtedly a victory for everyone, and Colonel Estiny thought so too, but he still had regrets.
The reason is that the "Mark I" could not implement his "swarm tactics".
His "swarm tactics" require tanks to be able to penetrate deep behind enemy lines to "break the small into a big" or "break the big into small" to launch attacks on various strategic locations, which requires the tanks to have comparable mobility.
However, the "Mark I" obviously cannot meet the requirements of "swarm tactics".
Ciel understood what he wanted: "So, you think we should develop a light tank?"
"Yes, you are right, Lieutenant!" Major Estiny nodded repeatedly. "A light tank is likely to meet our combat needs. As long as its frontal armor is thick enough to block bullets, and as long as its design is good enough, it can still cross trenches. So why do we need such a big thing? If we can make it run faster and farther, can it play a greater role on the battlefield?"
Charles was not surprised at this. It was he who proposed such a design requirement to the military, and it was based on the needs of the military that Renault designed the Renault tank, which only requires two people to operate and weighs only 7 tons.
It has been proved that the combat effectiveness of the Renault tank is better than other tanks that are like armed fortresses. It is even called the ancestor of tanks.
"I agree!" Charles turned his gaze to the Mark I tank parked in the center of the institute and said, "So, it has come to an end. We need a brand new tank. This tank must have..."
Ciel retracted his gaze and looked at Matthew: "You are responsible for the chassis, Matthew, just like we just said."
"No problem!" Matthew was confident.
There were blueprints, parts, and a complete set of machinery to produce hydraulic shock absorbers, and it seemed that all he had to do was put them together.
Charles turned his gaze to Estiny again: "The tank design is left to you, Colonel!"
"At your service, Lieutenant!" replied Estiny.
After a pause, Estiny said with some concern: "There is a problem here, Lieutenant. If we want to reduce the weight, we must reduce the number of personnel and weapons. In extreme cases, it may only need one machine gun, but then we can't take care of the sides, and its side armor must be thin..."
Charles blurted out: "Then design a rotating turret, Colonel!"
Colonel Estiny stood there with his mouth wide open as if frozen. It took him a while to react and he shouted excitedly, "That's right, Lieutenant. Rotating turret, why didn't I think of this! All the problems have been solved! God! I can almost see what it looks like!"
A strange smile appeared on Matthew's lips. Was this tank really designed by him and Estiny?
Didn't Charles design it in two parts and stuff it into their heads?
(End of this chapter)
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